SA recognises pain of forced adoptions

Australia's legacy of forced adoption highlights the need to ensure families are kept together wherever possible, South Australia's premier says.

Jay Weatherill on Thursday unveiled a memorial on the banks of the River Torrens in Adelaide for those affected by decades of forced adoptions.

The granite block, split in two to symbolise separation, contains an inscription which refers to the "ongoing grief and pain" experienced by mothers who lost their children, as well as the loss of identity and heritage for adoptees.

"The mothers, fathers and those adopted as children were denied the opportunity to love and care for each other, and I recognise the profound and long-lasting traumatic impact of that loss," Mr Weatherill said.

"I hope that this memorial, on the peaceful banks of the River Torrens, will provide a reflective space for those who suffered.

"This government will continue to support those affected and I reiterate my determination to do all I can to support families to stay together."

The removal of children from their parents has become a contentious issue for the SA government, which has been accused by figures including the state coroner of placing too much focus on family unity at the expense of child protection.

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Mr Weatherill's unveiling of the memorial came four years after he apologised in state parliament for policies that led to forced adoptions, preceding a national apology by then prime minister Julia Gillard in 2013.

An estimated 150,000 unwed Australian mothers had their babies forcibly adopted out from the 1950s to 1970s under a practice sanctioned by governments, churches, hospitals, charities and bureaucrats.